Super Mario Is Finally Getting An Animated Movie

Major news from the intersection of video games and movies: The Wall Street Journalreports that Super Mario Bros., one of the most venerable franchises in all of gaming, is getting an animated cinematic adaptation from Universal Pictures and Illumination, the animation company behind Despicable Me and Minions. If the movie does happen, it will bring together two of the biggest brands in popular culture.

And good news! We’ve already got an exclusive look at the trailer!

Okay, so that is the trailer for the original Super Mario Bros. movie from 1993, the live-action boondoggle starring Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo. So Mario has made it to the screen before ... sort of; as the trailer indicates, the movie bore little resemblance to any of the games. Presumably this version, which will be animated and feature major input from Nintendo, will be a more faithful (and less terrible) adaptation.

The Verge notes that Nintendo hasn’t officially confirmed this report, and that the Journal previously reported on a Legend of Zelda movie that never materialized. But Universal and Nintendo already have a relationship, thanks to the rides and lands themed to Nintendo properties that Universal is adding to their theme parks around the world in the next few years. So this partnership makes a lot of sense. (So does Illumination, which has shown a knack for appealing to the tastes of young audiences that also make of the core Mario fandom.) They have nowhere to go but up from the last Mario movie.